1JireEliom to the Unrenewed. The necefsity of conjideration. 1\r!Jift diwrji{)IIS. 11 .and corruption of Rea[on in the matters of God and our falvation. And Grace (as in the undcr4 {landing ) doth but cure this folly and. difira&ion, and make us Rea{onab/c again: It is but the opening of our eyes, and making us w1fe 111 the greatefi matters. It IS not a more unmanly thing ro love and plead for blindne{s, madnefs and difeafcs, and to hate both fight, and health, and wit, rharti( is to love and plead for fin, and to hate and vilitica holy life. , ~· 2 , Grant me b~r this one thing, that. thou wilt but.foberly exercife thy Rca[on, about thefc great important queihons; Where mufi I abtdefor ever? What mufi 1 do to be faved? ·w hat w:1s 1createdand Redeemed for? And I fhall hope that thy own underfianding as erroneous as ir is, wil~ work out fomcthing that will promote thy good. Do but withdraw thy felf one. hourin a dayfrom companyand orher bufinefs, and Confidtr but as foberly and feriouny of thy end and life, as thou knowcfi the nature an<l,weight of the matter cloth require, and I am perfwaded thy own Rea[on and Confciencewill call thee to Repentance, and fet thee, at lean, in a fat better way than thou wan in before. when thou walkefl alone, or when thou wakefl in the night, remember foberly thll God is ptefent, that time is hailing to an end, that judgement is at hand, where thou mufi giveaccount of all thy hours, of thy lulls and paffions, and defires ; of all thy thoughts, and words and deeds; and that thy endlefs joy or mifery dependeth wholly and certainly on this little time; Think but foberly on fitch thingsas thefe, bttt one hour in aday or two, and tr~ whether it will not at once recover thee ro wit and godlinefs, and folly and fin will vanifh away belore the force of Confidering Reafon, as the darknefs vanifheth before the lighr. I intreat thee now as in the prefenceof God, and as thou wilt anfwer the denyal of fo Reafonable a rcquefi, at the day of Judgement, that thou wilt but. re 7 folve to try thiscourfe of a fober ferioU5 Conpderation, about thy fin, thyduty, thy dangtr, thy hope, thy account, and thy everlajli11g jlate: Try it fometimes; efpecially on the Lords dayes: and do but marft the rtfolt of all; and whither it is that fuch fober confiderationdoth point o~ lead thee ? Whe· ther it be not towards adiligent holy heavenly life > If thou deny me thus much, God and thy Con~ fcience !hall bear witnefs, that thou thoughtfi thy falvation of little wotth , and therefore mail\ juflly bedenyed it. 9· 31 Would it not be flrange that a man lhould be penitent and Godly, that never once thought of the matter with any fcrioufnefs in his life? Can fo many and great difeafes of foul be cpred before you have once {oberly con(rdered that youhave them, and how great and dangerous they are, and by what remedies they mufl be cured> Can grace be obtained and exercifed, while you never fo much as ~hink·of it? Can the niain bufinefs of our lives be done without any [eriou1 thought/ ; when we think it fit to befiow fo many upon thetrivial matters of this world? Doth the world and the flc(h defcrvc to be remcmbred a\1 the day, and week and year ? and doth nm God and thy falvation de– fcrve to be thought on OI\e hour ln a day, or one: d.:~.y in a week? Judge of thefe things but as a manof reafon. If thou look that God, who hath given thee Reafon to g1,1ide thy Will, and a JfliU to command thy actions, fhould yet carry thee to Heaven like a Scone, orfave thee againft or with– out thy will, before thou didll ever once foberly thinft of it, thou maill haveIeifure in Hell to loment the folly of fuch expe&atioas. Pirection 6· gvjfer not tiJe Devil by company, pleafore or worldly bufincfs todivert or himkr •h.ee Dire[/.6. from theft feriosu Confit}erationr. §· •· The Devil hath but tw? wayes to procure .thy damnation. The one is by keeping thee from any fobcr Remembrance of fpmtual and eternal thmgs : and the other IS, tf thou w1lt needs think of them, toJmive thee into falfe erroneous thoughts. To bring to pafs the firll of thefe ( which is the mofi com~on P?werful m·eans) h.is ordinary.way is by diverfion: findin~ thee fiill fomerhing e1fe to Ev~n learning do : puttmg fome other thoughts tnto thy mind, and fome other work mto thy hand ; fo that thou and .honcfi canfl nev<r have leifurefor any fober thoughts ofGod : When ever the Spirit of God knocks at thy H"d1" m•yh: door, thou ar.t fo taken up Y:'ith other company, or other bufinefs, that thou can!\ not hear, or wilt ~~~~:~afr~~ not open to htm. Many attme hehath bten ready to teach thee, but thou wart not at leifure to hear more of'ceJl~and learn. Many atimehe fecretly jog'd thy confcience, and checkt thee in thy fin, and nlled thee 'Y •hings. afide to confider foberly about thy fpiritual and everlafiing !late; when the noife of foolilh mirth S,iJh l'urarch and pleafures, or the bufles ofencumbring c;ares and bufinefs, have Caufed thee to ftop thy ears and ~~ ~~:a J~· d put him o~, and refufe the motion. And i~ t~e abufe_d Spirit of God depart, and leave thee to thy !~;;'bo~:.: ~ beloved mlfth and bufinefs, and to thy felf, tt IS but J~; And then thou wilt never have a ferious f•M" ft•di"m effect11al thought of Heaven pexhaps till thou have lofi it ; nor a fober thought of Hell, till thou art •P10 ; frd •d in it ; ( unle!S it be fome defpairing, or fome dull uneffectual thought. ) ;:;a:h~!J;;;;: pDtticallJ pro~:o. .!!2.!!.am ipfamp11mj{N ttmporis neglt:d, [af!'is liuris dtltflat~s , i11 q~tibus ftufi iNludintrn abditallf ; q&am. a!i.iu:n~~ ,t;;t;~ft-: ram ; p•eticis~ literis no.'l nifi ad or1a111tnt11m rcfm:atis. )1.2.0 therefore asthou lov;fi thy foul,do not love thy pleafure or bufinefs fo well asto refufeto treat with the Spirit ofGod, who cornes to offer tbee greater pleafures, and to engage thee in a mqre im– '·portant bufiQe!S : 0 lay by all to hear a while, what God and confcience have to fay to thee. They <have gre~ter bufinefs with thee, than.any otherS that thou converfefi with. They have better offers and motiOns to make to thee, than thou !halt hear from any of thy old companions. If thl: Devil can but take thee up a while, with onepleafure one day. and another bufinefs another day, and keep thee
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